LONG RIDGE GLIDING CLUB'S OPERATION MANAGEMENT

Long Ridge Gliding Club's Operation Management

Long Ridge Gliding Club's Operation Management

About the Club

Managing operations is important, stimulating and challenging. It is central to successful organizational performance as it determines how the organization creates and delivers products at lower cost with higher revenue, meeting the challenges posed by changes in customer preferences, internet-based technologies and global supply networks, in addition to promoting creativity, managing knowledge, innovations, and encouraging social responsibility in finding solutions to those challenges. All these, can be achieved through effective operations management. (Naylor, 1996, 45)

The Long Ridge Gliding Club (LRGC) is located on a beautiful place, based on the crest of a ridge overlooking spectacular view at 400m above seal level, with simple but comfortable facilities for the customers. Customers are supplied withal bar and basic catering services, inexpensive bunkrooms are also readily available for course trainees within the club and for any club member who may wish to stay overnight the club boasts 300 pilots membership ranging from novices to export pilots. (Naylor, 1996, 45)

The club has essentially two main different types of customers, club members and the casual flyers who mainly come for one-off trial flights, like during holiday courses and corporate events. It has six employees who perform most within the club, there is a full time flying manager, a part-time mechanic and during summer months, a winch driver whose main purpose is to launch the gliders and two flying Instructors. (Naylor, 1996, 45)

The normal day operations change when more experienced pilots take to the air, in this case, they use their own gliders and they can cover a long distance like up to 300 kilometres, landing back at the club's airstrip three to four hours later and club members are charged a `winch tee' each time they take to the air, plus a charge per minute that they are in the air when using any of the club's six gliders. (Dilworth, 1996, 113)

Long Ridge Gliding association is based at military field on the crest of a ridge about 400 metres overhead ocean level. The amenities are simple but comfortable. Afar and basic catering services are supplied, and cheap bunkrooms are accessible for course constituents and club members wishing to stay overnight. The association has present members of almost 300 pilots. The association has vitally two distinct kinds of customers: association members and casual flyers that arrive for one-off test flights, vacation and corporate events. (Dilworth, 1996, 113)

A bar and basic catering services are provided by the club steward and inexpensive bunkrooms are available for club members wishing to stay overnight. The club has a current membership of nearly 150 pilots who range in ability from novice to expert. While some members have their own gliders, the club has a fleet of three single sweater and three twin sweater gliders available to its members. The club also offers trial flights to members of the public. These 'casual flyers' can book flights in advance or just turn upend fly ...